Ask John: Is Anime for Foreign Viewers Really Anime?

Question:
What is your opinion about anime that is aimed for a foreign audience, like the Big O II? Technically, it is still anime, but would one consider it as a lesser form of anime meaning it isn’t a “true” or “real” anime? Anime is originally intended for a Japanese audience, but what happens when that focus is shifted to viewers of another country? Is it still “anime,” or has that value been lessened?

Answer:
I’ll reveal some of my personal bias with this answer. Readers may contrast their own opinion against mine as they choose. I don’t have a strict definition for what does and does not constitute “anime.” I define anime as animation which originates in Japan and is primarily designed for Japanese viewers. The rationale for this definition is to distinguish “anime” that consists of Japanese concepts and tastes from animation manually animated in Japan by commission, which does not exhibit unadulterated native Japanese artistic character. To provide an example, Cowboy Bebop is a Japanese production intended for Japanese viewers, so it’s imbued with Japanese sensibilities and characteristics. The Batman Animated Series may be animated in part by a Japanese studio, but it’s dominant controlling concerns are American, and the show is specifically designed to prioritize and appeal to American tastes and preferences. I know that many Japanese animators think of their work not as specifically Japanese animation, but just as animation. But even Japanese animators do distinguish differences between Japanese and foreign produced animation.

Programs like The Big O II and IGPX defy easy categorization because they seem to be equally split between American and Japanese influences and goals. I’m personally not so narrow minded as to base my tastes in animation solely on cultural origin or visual style, but in certain cases I can’t help but perceive co-produced anime differently than I do anime made specifically for Japanese release. What I appreciate most about anime is its unique “Japaneseness.” Japanese anime is made up of native Japanese sensibilities toward literature and art. Only Japanese artists can create Japanese art, in the same way only French artists can create genuine French art, only American artists can create authentic American art, and so forth. Being interested in one variety of art isn’t racist nor immoral. It’s purely a matter of personal taste.

To varying degrees, I can’t help but sense a slightly different feel from American/Japanese co-produced anime than what I feel from exclusively Japanese anime. The Big O was created for Japanese release. The Big O II was specifically changed and revised during its production to make it accessible for American viewers, so especially Roger Smith’s personality feels slightly different in Big O II than it does in the first series. The 2004 Yu-Gi-Oh movie was created in Japan for American release, and it feels more artificial and arbitrary, less logical than I’m used to of Japanese children’s animation. Likewise the Pandalian anime TV series is a FUNimation co-production, and it feels much, much more moralistic and less spontaneous and witty than typical Japanese children’s animation. These slight differences in tone are caused by the clashing combination of Japanese and American tastes and characteristics in these shows. These programs are a compromise between the demands of Japanese and American creators and viewers, and I believe that astute viewers can perceive that compromise in such shows, compared to more distinctly Japanese or American productions.

I’ll admit that my personal decision to classify or not classify these type of American co-productions as “anime” is arbitrary. I think that’s fine because ultimately what’s important is whether or not I like them, not whether or not they are “anime.” I do object to labeling productions as “anime” that are obviously not Japanese animation, but trying to categorize what is an isn’t anime by percentage of Japanese content or influence is an endless debate with no practical benefit. I critique and categorize American co-productions based on what the animation is, compared to what it seemingly could or theoretically should have been, not based on what percentage of the animation staff was Japanese or the ethnicity of the program’s primary creators. Is The Big O II a lesser form or anime than Gundam Seed? I suspect that The Big O II, by design, will not be as characteristically Japanese as Gundam Seed, but that doesn’t intrinsically make it inferior in quality.